


From One Small Space to Another

by elfiepike



Category: Arashi (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-12-17
Updated: 2006-12-17
Packaged: 2017-10-13 13:55:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/138117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elfiepike/pseuds/elfiepike
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nino works in a conbini and Ohno comes in at the same time every night.</p>
            </blockquote>





	From One Small Space to Another

**Author's Note:**

> Beta by the lovely [](http://cimness.livejournal.com/profile)[**cimness**](http://cimness.livejournal.com/). (The summary is stolen from cimness, as well.) Written for [](http://community.livejournal.com/30_kisses/profile)[**30_kisses**](http://community.livejournal.com/30_kisses/): #8: "our own world."

Ohno always wears black because he says it's easier to match things when he wakes up, but Nino watches how he's drawn to bright colors and patterned silk-screened t-shirts. For Ohno's birthday Nino buys him a yellow shirt with German words on it (he doesn't know what they mean) and a picture of a gothic castle.

Ohno smiles when he sees it, with his eyes first: they light up, shining, and only then do his lips curve into the proper shape.

It makes Nino feel warm, like everything is really much simpler than he makes it out to be.

\---

The first time Nino saw Ohno was during his shift at the convenience store. Nino worked the graveyard shift; it gave him time to sleep in, and time to play his guitar during the day. (The wages just barely kept him in his apartment, so Nino constantly stole from the store, feeling no guilt whatsoever.)

Ohno came in at one in the morning, went to the back of the store, picked out a bottle of beer and a pre-packed dinner, purchased them, and left.

That alone wasn't so unusual or even remarkable. Ohno looked like the type who worked too hard, wearing a one-piece jumpsuit with patches of various car logos sewn on around the shoulders.

Nino had thought at the time: poor schmuck.

Ohno quickly became a regular, though, someone Nino found himself looking forward to; if Ohno wasn't there by one-thirty, Nino always found himself a little disappointed.

He made up stories about Ohno to pass the time: Ohno works as a mechanic at a manufacturing plant and is in high demand until late at night, fixing all the machines; Ohno is an insomniac and has a thing for combini delicacies; Ohno is secretly undercover for the cops and only gets to go on break at one in the morning.

He's pretty sure none of them are true, but it keeps boredom at bay until his shift is over at six.

\---

The first time the two of them actually _met_ , though, was outside of a bar in a slightly seedier district than Nino usually frequents. He didn't have anything against them (and loved them for the study of humanity) but usually when he went drinking, he went with Sho, who willingly paid and therefore also got to choose the establishment. Sho was boring and always went to a place near the university.

Nino had been having a good time; he was there with a guy he'd met at a club two days earlier, the skinny, hipster variety whom Nino always found amusing but would willingly take to bed if that was what was available. He was annoyed to discover that this particular hipster-type became boring under the influence, telling the same story three times over in the span of two hours. Nino thought he could probably finish the man's sentences at this point, and that's when he decided he needed to get a breath of fresh air.

Outside was chilly, but not too cold. Nino was glad to not go back inside for his coat. The street was slick from rain earlier in the evening, the dark pavement shimmering with streetlights and signs.

At this time of night, there weren't many pedestrians; Nino could hear people stumbling around, laughing too loudly and getting sick against the curb. When a car came around the corner he was momentarily blinded by the headlights. He swore under his breath, and blinked away the brightness, and saw someone walking in his direction.

He thought he was imagining it at first, that his eyes were playing tricks on him, but as his night vision slowly came back he could tell: the person walking down the street just in front of him was undoubtedly Ohno.

Nino didn't know his name yet, but the suddenness of seeing Ohno where he didn't expect to made him shout out, "Hey, you!"

Ohno stopped and looked around, hunching a little further into his black jacket. This was the first time Nino had seen Ohno in something other than that white jumpsuit. He felt a spark going all the way from his toes to his hair: Ohno in his own clothes, that fell on him the way only the most comfortable and well-worn clothes can, curving perfectly around Ohno's body, was so appealing Nino's mouth went dry.

"Over here," Nino said, waving.

Ohno, looking around again, furtive, stepped across the wet pavement until he was what Nino considered a respectable distance away when being called out by a stranger in the dark.

Nino took a steadying inhale of his cigarette, the tip glowing brighter for a moment, reflected in Ohno's eyes. "You always come into the combini where I work," he said, exceedingly aware of how odd this situation might appear. "You always come in late at night, and you always buy the same thing."

Ohno looked at him, then; Nino perhaps spent too many hours by himself pondering the strange quality of Ohno's face that made it simultaneously both blank and yet readable, but he thought, oh, there, he recognizes me, and he found his shoulders relaxing just that much.

"Don't you usually work now?" Ohno asked, less polite than just curious.

"It's my night off," Nino said.

"Ah," Ohno said. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

Nino shivered in his long sleeves.

"I should be going," Ohno said.

Nino took one last drag on his cigarette, exhaling the smoke cleanly upwards between them. "What's your name?"

"Ohno," Ohno said.

"I'm Nino." Nino dropped the butt on the ground, grinding it under his shoe. "Hang out for a second and I'll walk home with you."

"What?" Ohno asked.

"Just stay right there, I'll be right back."

He went back inside without turning to see if Ohno did, in fact, wait for him. His coat was still on his chair, and that hipster was now telling his story to the poor salaryman next to him. (It was a story of much woe, missed deadlines and stolen cars, but it was clear the salaryman had already heard enough.)

He didn't bother trying to be subtle, grabbing his coat in one hand and leaving some bills on the table for the waitress.

"You're back!" the hipster cried.

"I am," Nino allowed, and smiled his best retail smile, "and now I'm gone again. Good night. It was fun before you started drinking. It probably won't happen again."

"What--"

He could hear the hipster say something else, but Nino wasn't interested anymore, and the door shut on the noise of the bar behind him with a satisfying weight.

Ohno was still there, standing with his back to the door, watching the traffic lights change colors.

Nino couldn't help grinning; it was a strange compulsion. "You really waited for me?"

Ohno turned. "I shouldn't've?"

He seemed so soft, then, soft and tired, like it wasn't even willpower keeping him up but habit.

"Let's go," Nino said.

"Where?" Ohno asked, even as they started walking down the street. Ohno's stride was a little longer than Nino's, but he slowed his steps for him.

"Your place," Nino decided. "Mine is too small."

Nino looked over just in time to catch Ohno's crooked half-grin; in all the months that he had sold midnight meals to Ohno, this was the first time he had seen Ohno smile. He thought, suddenly and with a shocking ferocity: I want to see this again, this expression on Ohno's face.

"What's so funny?" Nino demanded, his heart beating loudly in his ears.

"You think my apartment might be larger--" and Ohno still grinned, putting his hands in his pockets and scuffing his feet on the ground.

Nino calmed himself. "I'll know when I see it," he said.

"All right," Ohno said, and his cheeks smoothed out, but there was some underlying happiness there--or maybe Nino was reading too much into it. He thought he saw it, and that was enough for him.

Nino stood close to Ohno when Ohno unlocked the door to his apartment. It _was_ small (but not as small as Nino's); under a single overhead light, it was furnished with a desk with a small tv on it, a miniscule kitchenette, and a futon in disarray, like Ohno never bothered tidying it in the morning, let alone putting it away.

Ohno shut the door behind Nino, and leaned over to untie his shoes. Nino slid out of his easily, and was ready when Ohno stood up again.

"Sorry it's so--" Ohno started, but Nino took his chance, reaching out and holding onto Ohno's shoulders as he kissed him.

He had closed his eyes out of habit, so he didn't know what expression Ohno might be making, but Ohno's lips were soft, and just--just right, Nino thought.

He pulled back, his hands still on Ohno's shoulders. "I didn't mean to surprise you," he lied. "I thought I was being obvious."

Ohno stared at him, blinking, dazed. "I haven't kissed anyone in a while," he confessed, as if Nino cared.

Actually, on second thought, Nino decided he did care. "Let's try again, then. Just to see how your technique is."

"Okay," Ohno said, already leaning in.

"Your technique is--good," Nino said, moments later. He felt flushed and warm all over.

"Ah," Ohno responded. He looked as breathless as Nino felt, so that was at least something; Nino decided it was a good sign.

"We should move away from the door, I think," Nino said. He stepped backwards, taking off his coat as he went, watching as Ohno turned the locks on the door and yawned.

There was a clock by the side of the bed, the numbers glowing red; it was well after three a.m.

Nino turned to watch Ohno, taking off his coat one arm at a time, blinking and blinking.

"I'll take the guest bedroom, then?" Nino joked. He was disappointed that this--would probably not be going any further tonight. It wouldn't kill him to wait, he thought. Well, it probably wouldn't.

"There's just the one bed."

It took Ohno four steps, Nino thought, to get from the door to me, and just one movement to touch my face like this.

"If that's all that's available," Nino said.

\---

Nino awoke to the sound of Ohno's alarm, too loud and much too early. "Oh my god," he moaned, pressing his face into the curve of Ohno's neck. Ohno was curled around him, warm and comfortable; Nino suddenly thought about Ohno in this same position, but with a--a body pillow, or maybe a large stuffed toy, and grinned.

It occurred to him that the alarm was still going off and Ohno hadn't moved.

"Ohno," he said, not moving more than necessary. "Ohno, your alarm is going off."

Ohno tightened his arms around Nino's back, and then relaxed again.

Nino sighed, rolling over and struggling out from under the covers and between Ohno's legs. The clock was really just too far away, he thought sourly. He turned it off with the press of a button, and went back under the blankets.

"Ohno, I think you have to wake up now," he said.

Ohno muttered something incoherent, flopping an arm over Nino's back.

"I mean, I'm fine spending the day in bed, but you might be late for work or something, I don't know," Nino said, using the best conversational tone he could muster up. He was closing his eyes already.

"Work?" Ohno asked, his voice still sleepy.

"Your alarm went off," Nino said again, curling up closer.

"Oh," Ohno said, and then his whole body woke up suddenly. "Oh! Oh, sorry, I've gotta go."

"Ah, the blankets--" Nino complained as Ohno's scrabbling upset their careful cocoon.

"Sorry," Ohno said again, leaning over him to pull them back into place. Nino watched him with half-closed eyes as Ohno dressed hurriedly in that familiar jumpsuit.

Nino yawned. "Have a good day."

Ohno paused by the door. "I'll be back," he said, and it seemed almost like he was giving something physical, like this spoken promise was something that Nino could hold onto.

Nino propped himself up on his elbow. "I'll make you dinner."

"What about the combini--" Ohno started.

"Don't worry about it," Nino said.

"I don't have much food," Ohno said.

"Go to work," Nino said, waving him away.

Ohno stood there at the door for a second longer. He came to some internal decision, and thrust his hand in his pocket and pulled out a key ring, striding over to Nino, taking off one of the keys. "This one is the house key," he said, putting it in Nino's hand.

Nino looked at him, holding the key; it was cold and sharp. "Go to work," he said again. "I'll be here when you get back."

"Okay," Ohno nodded, standing up. he nodded again. "See you later," he said.

The door shut softly behind him.

Nino looked at the clock again. He had a whole three hours before he had to call in sick. He turned over, pressing his face into the pillow, and fell back asleep.


End file.
